The “Escuelas Activas” program, adapted to COVID-19 regulations, begins

The Tenerife Island Council, through its Sports Department, has launched the fourth edition of the “Active Schools” program, adapted to comply with Covid-19 prevention and safety regulations and aimed at promoting active and healthy lifestyles among the island’s schoolchildren. Currently, 14 schools are participating in this program, with a total of approximately 750 students, and registration remains open.

The island’s Sports Minister, Concepción Rivero, emphasizes “the importance of maintaining and strengthening programs focused on healthy lifestyles with sports as the central element, especially at a time when the consequences of the global pandemic we are experiencing have exacerbated the already high rates of physical inactivity we were facing.”

Rivero explains that through this program, “students simultaneously work on physical aspects such as speed, strength, flexibility, endurance, and coordination, as well as psychosocial aspects, including values such as self-esteem and camaraderie. “We are committed to a well-rounded education for our children, one that includes regular physical activity and a healthy lifestyle,” he notes.

The island’s director of sports, Laura Castro, explains that “given the current circumstances, the activity has been adapted in accordance with current regulations regarding COVID-19 preventive measures,” and therefore, “efforts have been made to ensure the utmost safety for the children participating in the Active Schools program.”

Castro adds that “our goal with this program is for both elementary and middle school students to develop their basic physical abilities and motor skills through various sports, both team and individual.”

The range of activities scheduled for middle school students this year includes sports such as ultimate; new fitness trends (functional training, CrossFit, and calisthenics); urban dance; badminton; and volleyball. Elementary school students, meanwhile, will participate in multisport activities. The Cabildo provides schools with the qualified staff needed to carry out these activities, as well as the sports equipment, which is subsequently donated to the school.

The Escuelas Activas program, which is free of charge, is aimed at public schools (excluding universities), with priority given to those affiliated with the Canary Islands Network of Health-Promoting Schools under the Department of Education, Universities, Culture, and Sports of the Government of the Canary Islands, with the aim of improving students’ quality of life and addressing high rates of childhood obesity and diabetes through a sustained program of physical activity and sports.

Any schools wishing to obtain more information or participate may do so through the Sports Department’s website, https://deportestenerife.es/programas/escuelas-activas/, as well as through the Tenerife Educa platform, https://catalogocabildoeduca.es/